Festival Review: Governors Ball NYC 2014

Class acts ascend the stages on Randall’s Island

C: Let my just start out by saying never have I seen so many great LA bands in one lineup since moving to New York (PAPA, Broken Bells, Earl Sweatshirt…), but Fitz and the Tantrums surprised me. Before they even started, the kid who sold me my $12 Foster’s beer told me to expect a crazy show from Fitz. And then he showed me how to open the can using a bottle cap. He knew everything.

Fitz immediately grabbed the audience by the throat with the first note of “House on Fire.” The scorching sun and humidity seemed to bring out a deeper level of energy in the band as they pushed through the East Coast weather. Michael Fitzpatrick got the crowd going, but it was really Noelle Scaggs and her consummate vocals that took the performance from entertaining to captivating. The people in front of me had not seen them before either, and after dancing wildly, one turned to the other and said, “They’re like a dance club band! A band in a dance club!” Exactly.

D: I didn’t catch Fitz and The Tantrums only because I’ve seen themtwice before, but they put on a fantastic show without question!

Interestingly enough, I did not see any LA bands during the whole festival, unless you count Foster The People (but let’s not count Foster The People — more on that later). I had meant to see Hunter Hunted and Meg Myers, whom I had previously interviewed on the Blogcast, but they played first on their respective days, and we didn’t arrive early enough. However, I did enjoy the fact that there were so many acts from New York (TV On The Radio, Vampire Weekend, The Strokes, Sleigh Bells, and SKATERS, to name a few). I was going to this festival to be infused with the city’s scene, so I got to experience that.